7-3: Rope and Paper
You know what? I've been thinking that maybe at the very end of my series, I'll virtualize myself permanently and be called X.E.N.A.: Warrior Virus! I'll destroy everyone in my path and rule Earth forever! Mwahahahaha!
(((-3-)))
The Pawn became aware first of sounds: the slow ticking of a clock, the slight hum of electric lights, the faint murmur of voices… The noises all around her were so strange and mesmerizing that for several minutes she didn't even realize that she had eyes or limbs.
Finally her master's insistent voice broke though her thrill of euphoria. "The Warriors are close by… You must…before they realize…"
His words faded away and she missed the strange way the words were and yet were not a sound like the others around her. The instructions she'd been given were eclipsed by her playfulness and fascination with audible vibrations.
The door opened and a dark-skinned girl bustled in. "Come on, Millie! We have to be there to take a shot of people arriving at the dance. Where's the camera?"
The Pawn blinked at the girl, bemused. "What?"
"Quit playing around, Millie! We're in a hurry, remember?" She grabbed the other's hand and hauled her to her feet. "Help me find it."
"My n-name is Bloktra," she voiced slowly. "Where are the Warriors? Warr-yore-zuh!" Sounds were fun to make! They tickled her mouth pleasantly. "Buh-lock!"
"I'll call you Queen of the Nile if you'll just help me! Forget your games right now. We have work to do and we can't do it without the camera."
Searching the room beside Tamiya, Bloktra wondered what she was supposed to be doing. Her master's voice was gone now. Was this human her ally? What was a camera anyway?
(V)
Janika bit her lip as they walked toward the dorms. "I know the others are going to make me stay in my room if they find out. They're just like my parents, I swear! They'll think I'm too dangerous to be at the dance tonight and I really want to go! Please don't ruin it for me, Odd."
Odd looked uncomfortable, his loyalties divided. "I'll keep it a secret for now, but you'll have to let them know as soon as the dance is over."
The dark-haired girl breathed a sigh of relief and gave him a quick hug.
"Thanks. Hey, you said you were going tonight? You're not gonna go alone, of course. So, you know, I was just thinking maybe just for the heck of it, you know, we'd go…together."
"Huh?" Odd suddenly looked doubly nervous. "I…can't. Millie asked me 20 minutes ago. I told her I would."
She stared at him, shocked.
(V)
"So you said yes to Millie and no to Janika," Ulrich sighed, shaking his head. "Man, you really botched that one up!"
"I didn't do anything! Come on! Millie's more like a little sister than anything."
"Did you tell Janika that?"
"No. She just walked off without a word."
He was really beginning to feel guilty about it too. When Millie asked him, he had instantly thought of the tail-twisting on Lyoko. Was it really an accident? It had bothered him a lot and afterward he just couldn't look her in the eye or bring it up. He was secretly glad she said nothing either. But Millie was waiting for an answer and at the time he couldn't be sure Janika wanted to go with him. Now it was too late.
Odd sifted through the clothes in the closet. Ulrich walked out of the bathroom, already dressed. He and Yumi were going together that night.
"I saw Sissy going to the infirmary earlier. She said Janika tried to kill her. Do you know anything about that?"
He sounded suspicious and Odd rolled his eyes slightly to trivialize the complaint.
"You know Sissy. She'll say anything to get other people in trouble. Good thing Janika is a good suck-up. Have you seen her Bambi Eyes yet? The principal always falls for it. He'd never believe someone as sweet and cute as her would do anything to his own daughter."
The brown-haired boy shrugged. "Whatever. Why are you going through my closet?"
"I don't have anything to wear. Can I borrow something?"
"Who are you trying to impress? Millie?" Odd shot him a glare. "Okay, okay! But what's wrong with your regular bellbottoms?"
Odd dumped more of Ulrich's clothes on the floor. "They're too…casual. Don't you have anything besides khakis? I swear you have less style than a hobo."
"At least I'm not color-blind!" Ulrich jabbed back. He walked to a drawer and pulled out a pair of black slacks. "I hate this pair. Try them on."
"Hey, thanks!" The blonde slipped them on in the bathroom and came out a minute later. "Er…do you by any chance happen to have a belt?" He was holding the pants up to keep them on.
"Nope, sorry. I guess you can use a piece of rope or something." He sifted through his drawer and came up with one. "Yep, the only one Kiwi hasn't chewed up yet. Where is he, anyway?"
"I let him outside, but there is no way I am going to wear a piece of rope to a dance!"
"Then you'll just have to go in that nerdy pair of jeans your mom sent you two weeks ago. They're the only ones you have that are formal. What's it going to be: the rope or the nerdy pants?"
"Some choice." Odd sourly grabbed the rope and tugged it through the belt loops. "I don't want to hear a single word about this later, Ulrich. If anyone finds out about the rope or the pants, I'll sock you so hard you won't be able to see straight for a week!"
"That's what I'd classify as an empty threat," his friend laughed. "I have to go pick up Yumi. Feel free to use my cologne. And I think you might want to flatten your hair a bit. And sneakers aren't a good idea for tonight."
Odd stopped tying the rope and stared impatiently at the other boy. "Is there anything else you want to say before you finally leave me in peace, Your Highness?"
"Just one more thing," he smirked. "Don't forget to dance at least once with Janika."
"Who do you think you are? The matchmaker?"
Ulrich's laughter echoed down the hall.
Odd quickly finished dressing and left, making sure his shirt covered the "belt" before starting toward the stairs. He had barely taken three steps when the door to the stairwell opened as Jim and the principal stormed in. They focused on him and each took him by an arm.
"Odd, you're coming with us," the burly guy in a sweatshirt growled.
He started to get a bad feeling about the whole ordeal when they took him to the administrative building. He saw the smug look plastered on Sissy's face as she stood off to one side, her arm in an oversized cast and sling.
Mr. Delmas opened his office and pushed Odd inside. The sight that greeted the blonde boy's eyes was so astonishing that he couldn't do anything but stutter. Papers, seat cushions and just about everything else that hadn't been nailed down was torn to pieces, lying strewn about the room.
And Kiwi was sitting right in the middle of it all, smiling as if he was the cleverest dog in the world.
"Perhaps you would like to explain why you let a dog into my office as a practical joke," the principal said in a dangerous tone. "And don't try to deny it. My daughter saw you slinking around the building."
Odd's face heated up as he felt Sissy's contemptuous gaze drilling him in the back of the head.
Well, that's one reason we all hate Sissy. Little brat! Don't worry. You'll find out more about Bloktra in the next chapter. And now another poll! I hate the name I gave this episode and I'm taking suggestions. Anyone?
